By Chioma Obinna

With about 50 percent pregnancy success rate of Invitro Fertilisation, IVF, in the country, fertility experts in Nigeria are seeking for urgent guidelines and regulations for IVF as part of efforts towards improving the practice in Nigeria even as they explained the rationale behind the high cost of IVF treatment.

The experts, who spoke in Lagos under the auspices of Association for Fertility and Reproductive Health, AFRH, lamented that despite the growing number of IVF centres in Nigeria and the successes achieved so far by practitioners, Nigeria has no guidelines and appropriate regulations for IVF treatment.
In his view, the President of AFRH, Professor Osato Giwa –Osagie said with 39 functional fertility clinics in the country, there is need for a policy on IVF.

Giwa – Osagie who recalled the evolution of IVF treatment in Nigeria noted that no country in Africa has regulation for IVF and that there is need for Nigeria to play a leading role. “There is need to put in place guidelines and regulations because if we fail to do so a group of people may do that for practitioners which may not be of standards.  We have been talking for a long time now and nobody seems to be listening.”

The AFRH boss who was addressing the media on its forthcoming 4th Annual International billed to begin tomorrow in Lagos further explained the rationale behind the high cost of IVF treatment in Nigeria.

“Most of the things used in IVF are imported including what you know as water and all these are used once. Getting appropriately trained and qualified personnel like the nurses, embryologist and clinicians among others remain a challenge.

“The equipment is expensive. Most people have two to three equipment for one thing because of the issue of maintenance locally. You go there you find three   or four scan machines and these are all cost.”

Remarking that infertility affects 15 percent of the population, he said Nigerian women are prone to fibroids and the country is regarded as the headquarters of fibroids in the whole world.

On the conference with the theme, “Improving Pregnancy Rate of IVF in Africa”, Osagie said it would feature presentation of papers by industry giants amongst other intellectual discourse, with plenary lectures by notable luminaries in the field will address state-of-the-art issues in reproductive medicine and science.

The AFRH mandate seeks to create an awareness among all persons within Nigeria, Africa and abroad, of the importance of reproductive health.

This year’s edition will feature Ethics in IVF, new technologies in IVF, Low Cost IVF in Nigeria, Role of Reproductive Surgery and Quality Control, looking at the cost of procedure and how to rationalise it and come out with the way forward.

Over 500 participants are expected at the conference billed the begin 24th through 26th September 2014 in Lagos.
The  Co-chair, Dr Abayomi Ajayi  said the forum will educate stakeholders in the reproductive health sector such as the fertility doctors, gynaecologists, obstetricians, nurses, embryologists as well as counsellors on issues that pertain to successful and safe IVF practice.

Medical practitioners who attended will be awarded 10 percent Continuous Medical Education, CME, points.  Access Bank is the Major Sponsor of the conference.